Boys track: Exeter throwers show the power of three

EXETER — They are a formidable trio. Strong young men, they use their skill at throwing heavy objects great distances to vanquish foes.

STEVE CRAIG

EXETER — They are a formidable trio. Strong young men, they use their skill at throwing heavy objects great distances to vanquish foes.

Super heroes?

No. Ben Keach, Ryan Mills and Tim McCain are, in most ways, just three ordinary high school seniors. At least we think so. Then again, they do seem to have special uniforms that set them apart, but more about that later.

This is what we know for sure. They are members of the Exeter High School track and field team. They specialize in the throwing events — shot put and discus, mostly, with some javelin throwing, too. They have scored a bucket load of points for their team this year.

In last Friday's Seacoast Track & Field Championships, they combined to win all three throwing events, with a second and a third, for a total of 44 of Exeter's meet-winning 144.2 points.

"It's great working with people that are around the same distance and we push each other; McCain and I, we're always neck and neck in the disc and when he beats me, I'll try to beat him, and same for him," Keach said. "For all the events, we're all real close and it helps with friendly competition."

Of the three, Keach is the leader in terms of actual competition. He's ranked first in the state in the shot put at a tick over 50 feet, won the indoor shot title this winter with a school-record put of 53-8, is second in the state in the discus (behind Mills) and third in the javelin. The quietest of the three, the Newfields resident was also the last to come to track and field, having grown up playing baseball through middle school.

"We were doing it in gym class and I was throwing it farther than most of the other kids so the coach, Coach Hummer (Steve Holmes), asked me if I'd want to come out and asked if I wanted to try out for track, so I did," Keach said. "I'm glad they told me to come out because I love track."

Mills grew up in Stratham while McCain is an Exeter native. Mills and McCain took up track in middle school. Mills, the shortest, lightest of the three, is the master of the discus, his primary event since seventh grade.

And doing it well. Mills is the reigning Division I champ in the discus, finishing second at the Meet of Champions, and sixth at New Englands. He's thrown a personal best of 163-3 this season — the best mark in the state — and is hoping to have that perfect throw in one of the upcoming state meets to reach 175 feet and earn a trip to the nationals.

"I'm hoping just to get to New Englands," McCain said.

After all, without McCain in the competition, Keach and Mills might fall prey to their nerves. McCain, the self-professed court jester, dresses for the role in his pink shirt, white seat band, and a neatly trimmed beard. He knows that part of his job is to keep everybody else loose.

"I'm the bottom feeder. I just hang around and pick up the third places," joked McCain.

Of course, if it wasn't for his own teammates, he'd probably be winning a lot of meets. That's definitely the case in the discus. On Friday, McCain's throw of 136-11 was five feet better than the best any of the other 10 teams could muster but behind both Mills (146-3) and Keach (139-3). Same with the Division I standings. Entering the Seacoast meet,. Mills, Keach, and McCain were ranked 1-2-3.

Plus, McCain gets some bonus props because he came up with the special tie-dyed throwing shirts. Hot pink for home meets and lime green for road trips, the shirts have a slogan on the back that reads: "Throw, eat, Get Big, Repeat."

"I work with a guy who makes them and I said, 'Hey, do you want to make us pink shirts with a funny saying on the back?' I came up with (the saying) kind of on the spot. It sounded catchy," McCain said.

Catchy? Maybe. Eye-catching? Absolutely.

"Especially the first time we wore them in indoor season everyone was looking at us kind of funny," Keach said. "All three of us got top six and they were kind of wondering why we were wearing pink."

Whether Keach, McCain and Mills will continue to wear pink (it should be duly noted that Mills was not wearing his shirt while being interviewed) in college remains to be seen. What is known is that each intends to continue to pursue the sport in college.

Mills is headed to Southern Connecticut, where he is anxious to add the hammer throw to his repertoire. McCain has chosen Anna Maria in Paxton, Mass., where he'll get a chance to play football as well as throw. Keach is headed to Keene State, with the hope that he might be able to transfer to the University of New Hampshire in the future.

First there are two more state meets and hopefully a group trip to the New Englands. That means more time to work together, laugh together, throw heavy objects around, and make a few more memories.

"We push each other. You know, we look out for each other. Make sure none of us are getting into trouble," Mills said.

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